Palm Bay is among the cities in Brevard that have red-light cameras at some intersections.

Living in Cocoa Beach, I can tell you the intersection cameras have slowed traffic speed in general and drivers are now more inclined to approach intersections prepared to stop. But you miss an important point - the use of cameras for intersection enforcement frees up local police departments from sitting on intersections ... Your piece also missed an important financial point - the revenue you state is gross revenue, not net. When you deduct the cost of officers attending contested traffic court hearings (usually on overtime) because the accused, in spite of photographic evidence, hires Lawyer & Lawyer, the windfall you allude to is not so bountiful. But most important, is that A1A in Cocoa Beach has 40,000 vehicles per day on the average. The 5,059 citations in Cocoa Beach over a two-year period equates to just less that seven per day. So, Matt, you take the side of the seven law breakers instead of the 39,993 per day that abide by the law. You are way off base.

Chuck Greenwood

The purpose of the cameras is first, to make money for the private, profit-making company. Second, to make money for the municipality. If the governing bodies were interested in safety, the offenders would be forced to attend safe driving class, and give up their driving privilege for some time. The inattentive, impatient and downright scary driving of some folks leads me to disagree with your assertion that Brevard drivers are safe.

Fred D. Bartleson, Jr.

I have found that if I drive the speed limit, I have no trouble stopping for a red light. Try it. The fines are too small for the perps' reckless endangerment of other motorists and pedestrians. What the local government wants to do with the booty is fine with me. It can relieve cops for more pressing work and hold down taxes on law-abiding citizens. I guess you don't believe in entrepreneurship, capitalism and free markets, but I commend them and think they are due their negotiated fees.

Jeffrey Blossom

This has nothing to do with crash data or public safety; that's only how they sell the idea. This is all about the police department farming out their work and receiving revenue.

Q&A column: "Rubio: Surveillance here to stay"

Dave Barton

He puts government surveillance above the rights we are guaranteed under the Constitution.

Pat Galbraith

If a business has information about you and you don't like that or they use it to injure you in any way, you can bring them to court and exact punitive damages, plus get a cease-and-desist order. Every credit card you have has a statement of rights in the contract you signed. If you feel you have been abused, you can take action. But when you don't know what or where or who, and can't see the information, what do you do? Who do you go to? And how do you exact punitive damages for a government?

Peter Fusscas

How convoluted is our understanding of the Bill of Rights. It is politically incorrect to profile your enemies and our criminals, but acceptable to violate the constitutional rights of American citizens in the name of national security. Bill of Rights - Fourth Amendment ... You do not balance, compromise, suspend or amend constitutional rights; you protect them. Use technology for oversight, not misuse and abuse of information.

William Pilgrim

Well, at least one politician is telling it like it is. Repeal the Patriot Act, Homeland Security, and it is just going to pop up under another name, for our protection, of course. I definitely do not like it, but it has been too useful a tool for our government to willingly give it up now. Say what you will or believe what you will, in my opinion, all the moaning and groaning and challenges and investigations will not change the fact that, for a variety of reasons, Americans gave up their privacy for all intents and purposes when they adopted the cell phone.

Letter: "Tax-funded school food lets parents off the hook"

Bonnie French

Children have no control over their circumstances. They do not choose who brings them into the world, nor can they control how they are treated by the people who create them. The fact of the matter is that I would rather use my taxpayer dollars to feed a child than to buy a bomb or give a tax break to a corporation. In case you haven't noticed, times are still very tough for a lot of people.

Marie Carter

It's always interesting to see these debates going on, but I'm really despairing at the lack of data or solid information from current, objective studies on this issue. I'm really curious about what is really happening with the families who are the recipients of this kind of aid, because we have "food for kids" programs here as well, and though I've always liked to think of myself as social justice-minded, I've always wondered about the approach of feeding programs at school. I'm not sure if we know if the feeding programs are the best, most effective means of raising people out of poverty or of helping kids because I don't know enough about what is happening in the families of the kids who are the recipients of this aid.

Paul Friel

We're the richest country in the world by far. If we can't feed a child who may otherwise go hungry, then what can we do as a Christian society? Consider your meager tax dollars used for schools as a private donation to feed the hungry, which I bet you don't do very often. Even Ayn Rand took government funds when necessary. Find a real problem to whine about, please.